Job summary
- Main area
- Finance
- Grade
- Band 8b
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full time
- Part time
- Flexible working
- Job ref
- 153-CO06669
- Employer
- University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Poole Hospital
- Town
- Poole
- Salary
- £66,582 - £77,368 pa
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 06/09/2026 23:59
- Interview date
- 16/09/2026
Employer heading
Head of Financial Services
Band 8b
As University Hospitals Dorset we are a three site acute trust with ‘university hospital’ status through our partnership with Bournemouth University, working with an annual budget of £730m.
We offer highly regarded health services, employing some 10,000 staff. Our ambitious £500m transformation programme is well on the way to delivering state-of-the-art facilities over the next two years to meet the current and future healthcare needs of the populations we serve.
In an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty with over seven miles of sandy beaches you’ll find inspirational opportunities to achieve your perfect work/life balance. With the New Forest and the Purbecks on our doorstep, we’re also less than three hours from London by road or train. The thriving towns of Poole, Bournemouth and Christchurch give way to idyllic villages and unspoilt landscapes just minutes from our hospitals.
We believe that having a diverse workforce, and allowing people to be themselves, is essential in ensuring we offer an inclusive, welcoming and productive place to work.
We especially welcome applications from minority groups in the community who may be underrepresented in our workforce.
At UHD our active staff network groups are the Women's Network, Black Asian Minority Ethnic Group (BAME), Pride Network, European (EU), Pro Ability Staff Network, and the Armed Forces Support Group.
As a Trust we are proudly signed up to the Disability Confident and Armed Forces Covenant guaranteed interview schemes.
We are aware that some candidates may choose to use AI tools to support the preparation of their application. While this is not discouraged, we kindly remind applicants that submissions should remain an honest and accurate representation of your own experience and suitability. Personal integrity is an important part of the recruitment process.
Job overview
University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust is comprised of three hospitals; the Royal Bournemouth Hospital, Poole Hospital and Christchurch Hospital, which merged on 1 October 2020, creating a new organisation. The Trust provides huge opportunities and benefits in Dorset to the way patient care is delivered now and in the future and will lead to better outcomes, improved quality and more efficient service delivery.
Our values define who we are as #TeamUHD.
- We are caring
- We are one team
- We are listening to understand
- We are open and honest
- We are always improving
- We are inclusive
They underpin everything the Trust’s does now and in the future. They define how we treat our patients and visitors, but also how we treat each other – our valued team mates and colleagues.
Interview: 16th September
Main duties of the job
Reporting to the Associate Director of Finance (Financial Services, Systems, Capital & Projects), you will directly line-manage the financial services portfolio, working closely with the Associate Directors of Finance, Finance Business Partners, the Head of Contracting and Commissioning, and Commissioner contract teams to maximise income flows to the Trust.
The role of Head of Financial Services has prime responsibility for the provision of a wide range of financial accounting operations necessary for the Trust to fulfil it's statutory and non-statutory duties and obligations, alongside those of the Trusts Charitable Funds Accounts. Additionally, the Head of Financial Services will provide comprehensive management support to the Associate Director of Finance, deputising as appropriate.
The post holder will use high level technical, analytical, interpersonal and negotiating skills to develop excellent working relationships with a wide range of internal and external managers across the NHS and wider system, and work autonomously as an expert practitioner, with minimal supervision, using own initiative to make operational decisions often without reference to others.
Applicants must be a CCAB Accountant and NHS Experience is highly desirable. We encourage people from diverse backgrounds to apply for our roles as diversity strengthens our teams.
For more information on this role please contact Andrew Monahan, Associate Director of Finance, on [email protected]
Working for our organisation
In return for your hard work and dedication you will enjoy a wide variety of benefits including:
- Band 8b salary package starting at £66,582 pa and increasing to £77,368 pa
- 27 – 33 days holiday (excl bank holidays based on length of NHS service)
- Hybrid and flexible working available
- Generous relocation package available
- Standard NHS pension and other associated benefit
Our values define who we are as #TeamUHD. They underpin everything we do now and in the future. They define how we treat our patients, visitors, and each other, our valued teammates and colleagues. UHD are investing in services across the Trust, with many being transformed and developed following merger and the New Hospital Programme. This means that some services may move site this year or next, either temporarily or long term. Recruiting Managers interviewing for this role will be happy to answer any specific questions that you have about this at interview.
Please note if the role or service is relocated as part of a planned move, employees will not be eligible for excess mileage reimbursement. Travel from the postholder's home to the new work base will be considered a normal commute. Any other changes not related to this relocation will be managed according to the relevant Trust or National terms and conditions.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
See attached documents for full details of the job description and person specification for the Band 8b Head of Financial Services.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Professional Accountancy (CCAB) Qualification
- Evidenced continuous professional development record
Desirable criteria
- Masters level qualification
Experience
Essential criteria
- Expert, demonstrable knowledge of a wide range of financial accounting and information systems and accounting procedures within the NHS
- Detailed knowledge and understanding of International Accounting Standards and their application
- Detailed understanding of the Payment by Results (PbR) tariff system and its application within an NHS Foundation Trus
- Experience of modelling the financial impact of service pathway redesign
- Experience of developing income, expenditure and activity forecasts, including the modelling of different scenarios
- Expert analytical skills to solve highly complex financial and non financial problems including devising and using benchmarking data as a tool to compare and contrast detailed data sets
- Significant experience of working with Clinical Care Group & Non-Clinical Care Group colleagues
Desirable criteria
- Experience in the use of E-Financials software packages
- Experience in the use of PLICS costing software
- Previous experience of working within an NHS Foundation Trust
- Experience of using Business Objects
Technical Skills Competencies
Essential criteria
- Clear, demonstrable understanding of statutory and other financial responsibilities
- Computer literate with experience of using Microsoft Office applications
- Highly developed influencing and negotiation skills, including the ability to communicate contentious information to an audience that may not be receptive. This will include senior managers within the Trust and external stakeholders
Knowledge
Essential criteria
- Expert knowledge of NHS financial and accounting procedures in relation to the portfolio
- Understanding of NHS statutory and other financial responsibilities
- Ability to interpret highly complex information, including national financial policies
- Recent Expert Knowledge of Clinical Care Group & Non-Clinical Care Group finances
Interpersonal Skills
Essential criteria
- Active listening skills, to interpret managers needs and issues
- Ability to forge and maintain constructive relationships with senior managers and to constructively challenge and hold to account in relation to financial decision making and subsequent consequences
- Excellent inter-personal and communication skills
- Confident in dealing with key relationships with Clinical Directors and Directors of Operations and senior managers within the organisation
- Ability to use initiative, work autonomously, and demonstrate flexibility
- Ability to lead a team of fellow professionals and to adopt a collaborative approach both within the Finance function and across UHD
- Able to communicate sensitive/contentious financial information in a clear and persuasive way
Other
Essential criteria
- Ability to express facts, ideas and opinions clearly and directly both orally and in writing to both internal and external stakeholders
- Political astuteness to understand the business, political and economic context in which discussions are taking place
- Ability to write and present reports on complex matters in a way which can be understood by other professionals
- Excellent presentation skills
- Ability to builds networks with external contacts to maintain professional knowledge and developments within the local healthcare economy
- Emotionally resilient with the ability to provide and accept constructive criticism and to reflect and learn from guidance and feedback
- Well organised, a completer/ finisher with the ability to multi-task complex issues
- Ability to work to strict deadlines and to manage the expectations of stakeholder
Language requirement
Essential criteria
- Be able to speak English as necessary to undertake the role
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Andrew Monahan
- Job title
- Associate Director of Finance
- Email address
- [email protected]
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